What Should I Buy?
Fuzz pedals that solve the Jimmy/Jimi conundrum...
QI love that early hard rock sound typified by Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page in The Yardbirds, Pagey on the first Led Zeppelin album, and everything Jimi Hendrix did. I know these guys were using Tone Bender pedals loaded with Germanium transistors back in the day. My question is, do I need to sniff out an original example of one of these pedals to get an authentic tone? Are all fuzz boxes essentially the same and we’re falling for good old marketing hype once again? I’ve read that manufacturers switched to silicon transistors in the late 60s so, what impact did that have on tone? H Wilkins, via email
AThe Germanium-fuelled Tone Benders crushed beneath Jeff and Jimmy’s Chelsea boots were much warmer sounding than the silicon-enhanced boxes poked by Jimi Hendrix’s Cuban heels in the latter part of his career. Jimi did go Germanium over his first couple of records so you should get the experience you need from a Tone Bender clone. The good news is that more time, effort and research has gone into replicating those original Tone Benders than has been expended on curing your average tropical disease. So, no, you don’t have to go vintage to get the sound you want.
1. SOLA SOUND MKI TONE BENDER BY COLORSOUND £899
If the price tag doesn’t knock you over, the authentic 60s fuzz will. Colorsound commissioned four respected“MK I magicians” to produce their own takes on original Sola Sound artefacts. No two original Benders sounded exactly the same so the subtle differences in this new quartet will allow you to find a pedal with a personality of its own.
2. RETROMAN LOLA MKII $175
The hand-built Lola MK II reproduces that early Kinks, Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin sound at a very non-boutique price. Wisconsin, USA-based Retroman genius Joe Wolf isn’t just pumping these things out, either: the Wolfman uses a mere fraction of the Germanium trannies he buys thanks to his rigid quality control efforts.
3. Fulltone ’69 MKII £175
If you hope to nail Hendrix’s early Germanium tone and can’t get what you need from the often-anaemic sounding Fuzz Face stuff, try this. True bypass, and built to the usual high Fulltone standards, the ’69’s useful contour control reveals a range of tones from spiky and raucous to thick and juicy.